Transcript Nathaniel Hawthorne & Dark Romanticism

Nathaniel Hawthorne & Dark
Romanticism
American Literature &
Composition
Ms. Villa
Nathaniel Hawthorne
• Nathaniel Hawthorne (born Nathaniel
Hathorne; July 4, 1804 – May 19, 1864)
was an American novelist and short story
writer.
• Changed his last name so he would be
disassociated with relatives that were
involved in the Salem Witch Trials
• Much of Hawthorne's writing centers
around New England, many works
featuring moral allegories with a Puritan
inspiration.
• His fiction works are considered part of
the Romantic movement and, more
specifically, dark romanticism
• His themes often center on the inherent
evil and sin of humanity, and his works
often have moral messages and deep
psychological complexity.
• As he looked back on this period of his
life, he wrote: "I have not lived, but only
dreamed about living".
• He contributed short stories, including
"Young Goodman Brown" and "The
Minister's Black Veil", to various magazines
and annuals, though none drew major
attention to the author.
• Salem Custom House
•
where Hawthorn
Worked...
Describe the
architecture
• Hawthorne returned to writing and
published The Scarlet Letter in mid-March
1850
• This is probably his most famous work.
• Literary style and themes
• Hawthorne was predominantly a short
story writer in his early career. His four
major romances were written between
1850 and 1860: The Scarlet Letter (1850),
The House of the Seven Gables (1851),
The Blithedale Romance (1852) and The
Marble Faun (1860).
• Hawthorne's works belong to romanticism or,
•
more specifically, dark romanticism,cautionary
tales that suggest that guilt, sin, and evil are the
most inherent natural qualities of humanity.
Many of his tales and novels focus on a type of
historical fiction, though Hawthorne's depiction
of the past is used only as a vehicle to express
themes of ancestral sin, guilt and retribution.
• Statue of Hawthorne
in Salem,
Massachusetts.
Some Works
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Selected short stories
"My Kinsman, Major Molineux" (1832)
"Young Goodman Brown" (1835)
"The Gray Champion" (1835)
"The White Old Maid" (1835)
"The Ambitious Guest" (1835)
"The Minister's Black Veil" (1836)
"The Man of Adamant" (1837)
"The Maypole of Merry Mount" (1837)
"The Great Carbuncle" (1837)
"Dr. Heidegger's Experiment" (1837)
"A Virtuoso's Collection" (May 1842)
"The Birth-Mark" (March 1843)
DARK ROMANTICISM
AMERICAN LITERATURE &
COMPOSITION
MS. VILLA
WHAT IS IT?
• Dark romanticism is a literary subgenre that emerged
•
•
•
from the Transcendental philosophical movement
popular in nineteenth-century America.
Works in the dark romantic spirit were influenced by
Transcendentalism, but did not entirely embrace the
ideas of Transcendentalism.
Such works are notably less optimistic than
Transcendental texts about mankind, nature, and
divinity.
Authors considered most representative of dark
romanticism are Edgar Allan Poe, Nathaniel Hawthorne,
Herman Melville, poet Emily Dickinson and Italian poet
Ugo Foscolo.
SAY WHAT?
• DARK ROMANTIC works are notably less
optimistic than Transcendental texts about
mankind, nature, and divinity.
• Authors considered most representative of
dark romanticism are Edgar Allan Poe,
Nathaniel Hawthorne, Herman Melville,
poet Emily Dickinson and Italian poet Ugo
Foscolo.
ORIGIN
• Dark Romanticism's birth was a mid-
nineteenth-century reaction to the
American Transcendental movement.
CHARACTERISTICS OF DARK
ROMANTICISM
• Dark Romantics are much less confident
about the notion perfection is an innate
quality of mankind, as believed by
Transcendentalists.
• Dark Romantics present individuals as
prone to sin and self-destruction, not as
inherently possessing divinity and wisdom.
More Characteristics
• The Dark Romantics adapted images of
anthropomorphized evil in the form of Satan,
devils, ghosts . . . vampires, and ghouls.
Secondly, while both groups (T & DR) believe
nature is a deeply spiritual force, Dark
Romanticism views it in a much more sinister
light than does Transcendentalism, which sees
nature as a divine and universal organic
mediator.
•
How Dark Romantics Portray the
World
• Dark Romantics, the natural world is dark,
decaying, and mysterious; when it does
reveal truth to man, its revelations are evil
and hellish. Finally, whereas
Transcendentalists advocate social reform
when appropriate, works of Dark
Romanticism frequently show individuals
failing in their attempts to make changes
for the better
Examples of Dark Romantics
• "Tell-Tale Heart" (1843) by Edgar Allan Poe"The
•
•
•
•
•
Birth-Mark" (1843) by Nathaniel Hawthorne
"The Minister's Black Veil" (1843) by Nathaniel
Hawthorne
Moby-Dick (1851) by Herman Melville
Bartleby the Scrivener" (1856) by Herman
Melville
The Fall of the House of Usher" (1839) by Edgar
Allan Poe"Dream-Land" (1844) by Edgar Allan
Poe
"The Raven" (1845) by Edgar Allan Poe